BioPower intends to be a leading force ...
in the crucial Waste to Energy sector. Within 5 years BioPower will process in excess of 800,000 tons of ‘environmentally & politically challenging’ waste streams (Sewage Sludge, Industrial Sludge, Organic/Food Waste). BioPower will convert these streams into Energy Rich Solutions, in the form of: BioGas, Electricity, & high value Fertilisers without the traditional by-products which continue to cause significant harm to our environment.
It will achieve this through the development of infrastructure required to take advantage of the commercial opportunities, created by national and pan-European legislators, to address the three major environmental policy objectives. These are: Kyoto Protocol / Global Warming; Renewable Energy; and Water Pollution.
Energy from Waste (EFW) ...
is increasingly being seen as something of a silver bullet solution to enable cleaner energy production while also diverting significant volumes from traditional limited landfill. European legislation has also put the onus on each member state to divert significant volumes of organic waste away from landfill to reduce harmful gasses being released into the atmosphere. BioPower will be exploiting a proven technology that is revolutionising the possibilities for organic waste streams by capturing these gasses and using them to generate biogas or electricity & heat. The creation of a Bio Energy infrastructure, known as “BioParks”, across Ireland & UK has already commenced with BioPower planning to develop 10 facilities in Ireland and 20 in the UK.
It is the integrated and sustainable nature of these activities alongside BioPower’s unique ability to identify commercially advantageous sites and then successfully bring them through the planning & licensing process that will make BioPower a success.
BioPower makes use of a proven technology ...
known as anaerobic digestion (AD) to achieve these goals. Although the first AD facility was built by a leper colony in Bombay as long ago as 1859, the concept has, for the most part, remained the preserve of specialist sectors. AD treatment of biodegradable waste results in a biogas that is then used to generate electricity and heat. The principal bi-product is a digestate which can be a valuable fertiliser which can be used by the farming community for the cultivation of Biomass crops (Willow, Elephant Grass/Miscanthus). BioPower are in the process of establishing a brokerage for the acquisition and sale of volume based biomass contracts throughout Ireland and the UK. This vehicle will be used to optimise logistical challenges and return for the digestate aftermarket.
AD has taken time to join the renewable energy mainstream alongside technologies such as wind and solar, however, as biogas fuels come into sharper focus as major contributor to the future energy mix, the spotlight has shifted significantly. This drive is underpinned by government policy and public sentiment to dispose more usefully of a whole range of organic wastes streams (food waste, animal by-products, farm waste, sewage, green garden waste etc) without recourse to landfill. AD can play a vital role in meeting both energy and waste management needs at the same time.
Governments throughout Europe, including Ireland & UK, continue to drive renewable energy initiatives and have supported these with various incentive schemes grants etc. All the technologies and processes used by Bio Power are in tune with this thinking and are attracting a large following amongst the environmental lobby.
The commercial model behind each Bio Park is based on the following lines of revenue:
- Contract gate fee per tonne of waste input
- Electricity generated is sold back through a grid connection
BioPower is planning to build and operate 30 BioParks in all with the following planned roll out:
